Jade Anderson death highlights urgent need for change in Dangerous Dog Law says Kennel Club

(KC Release) Following the tragic death of schoolgirl, Jade Anderson, the Kennel Club urges the government to change fatally flawed dangerous dogs legislation.

Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary, said: “We are truly saddened to hear about the death of Jade Anderson and our thoughts and deepest condolences go to her family.

“We do not know the specific circumstances surrounding this incident, but the fact that dog related incidents continue to occur highlights how ineffective the current dangerous dogs legislation is.

“We wonder how many more tragedies must take place before the government admits that the breed specific legislation in the Dangerous Dogs Act is fatally flawed, wasting limited police resources on seizing dogs of a particular breed, rather than focusing on dogs of any breed that are out of control. Recent incidents have involved many different breeds, showing that any dog can be dangerous in the wrong hands.

“Breed specific legislation is also having the unintended consequence of turning banned breeds into status symbols, so that they are taken on by the wrong people who train them for the purposes of fighting or aggression.

“We urgently need Dog Control Notices to be introduced, to deal with the owners of dogs that are out of control at the earliest signs of a problem. Recent government proposals to extend section three of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to apply to attacks that take place on private property, as appeared to happen in this case, are welcome, but we stress that children should never be left alone with any dog, regardless of its breed or previous behaviour.”

12 replies

I’d add that the current dog law and its proposed changes, including those dealing with attacks on private property, focuses almost exclusively on punishment rather than prevention. When will the government accept that the need for education is the driving force in preventing dog attacks? Sections 1 and 3 of the DDA go nowhere in minimising risks, and this is where efforts need to be concentrated. Owner safety and behaviour training and aptitude measurement must be considered if attacks of any kind are to be prevented. DEFRA’s own papers published following last year’s consultation set out quite clearly that the aim of the extension of s.3 DDA is to increase prosecutions without any increase in costs, and that the risk of that is that attacks will not be prevented. The approach is totally short-sighted and we MUST change our mindset if lives, human and canine, are to be saved. Responsible dog ownership is the only way to achieve effective management of the problem, and that can only be achieved by addressing the issues from the ground up and educating the very people whose dogs are currently out of control for whatever reason.

ALL dogs, regardless of breed, size or type, need positive reinforcement training… I say bring in a dog licence! that way there is some way to regulate the “human” factor as to who and why and what dog/s they look after.

Though I fully support the idea of the irresponsible owner being prosecuted for dog attacks, not for one second do I believe that the British Government will ever scrap BSL.

It’s all about saving face for this government and never ever admitting that they make mistakes! This happened recently with the government’s workfare program. They hurriedly introduced a new workfare bill to retroactively change their legislation after the High Court had judged it to be unlawful rather than admit that they had made an error in the first place.

Though they may finally get the message and start to penalise the irresponsible dog owner, I cannot see a point in time when BSL will be scrapped.

I have three Staffies and I am very concerned that the authorities will speak to ban the breed. In France they are only allowed in as they are pedigree staff reg with the KC. Breeds such as Rotties , German Shepards etc can only be owned if the owners complete a course on how to handle, train them etc. What a great idea, secondly if one wants to keep an entier horse in the UK it must me graded for breeding puposes. Why can it not be the same for male dogs in the UK come KC we must have some rule changes BSL is stupid and saves no children from bad owners!!

yet again the dogs are getting bad press, when will the Government ever get it ??????? The problem doesn’t start with the dog, or even the irresponsible owner, the problem starts WITH THE BREEDER !!!!!!! Never mind bringing back Dog Licences they will NEVER work. Make ALL breeders have a licence, say at £1000 per year, microchip ALL the pups to the BREEDER, and only to the breeder, then MAKE THE BREEDER FULLY RESPONSIBLE for the future welfare/behaviour etc of the life they created, because if they didn’t breed willy-nilly part of the problem could be resolved !!!! IMPOSE A MINIMUM fine of £10,000 on unlicenced breeders, with no exception !!!!!!! Suddenly that money-making machine wouldn’t look so appealling, nor would it be so quickly disregarded after it’s past it’s best.

I personally think be it dog licence or any other licence you will still get some people that will not buy a licence. I am all for buying one but I think the only safe answer to all these problems is tougher sentences for irresponsible dog owners no matter what breed plus longer jail sentences for those that teach or encourage dog fighting.

Agree with other comments. All dogs should be licensed and required to be registered with sex, breed type, shots, and so on. Fines should be levied on non compliance. Dangerous dogs laws should be on a dogs individual history, and not breed. Let hold owners accountable for their animals. Monies collected should be used for dog education.

Don’t know where you got the idea that stallions in the uk all have to be graded and licenced, that is complete and utter rubbish. Certain breed societies require it for them to be registered with them, but rest assured there is a huge welfare problem in this country with horse overbreeding as well.

While I agree with many of the comments on here. I am afraid to say that if they brought in the dog licence, how would it be policed? Police are stretched too thin already.

Chipping the dog’s to the breeder is 1 idea however we must look at the full picture. Surely a irresponsible owner will simply think “thats ok the breeder will get done”. When the breeder may have taken all steps needed to ensure that they new owner is vetted. Lets be honest, anyone can look good for an hour.

Banning bull breeds will simply push it underground causing even more havoc with illegal breeding and puppy farms.

I do Not claim to have any answers to the questions that are being asked and this is simply my opinion but i believe:

All owners of all breeds be accountable for their dogs. I must state however that i do not believe that making the DDA to make a dog attack on private property a criminal offence will be that open and shut. If someone breaks in to my home, would i be prosecuted for the dog biting the attacker and protecting my family? If my dog bites the postman then yes i am accountable. If they do not address every single scenario before bringing this in, then im afraid it will all be one big grey area again.

I myself own a bull breed and i trust my dog 100% with me. I will not leave her with someone she does not know in my house. I will not leave her with a child unsupervised. I would do this with any breed of dog and i have had the privillage to own a few breeds and with many hours of training and time spent with my dogs i can safely say they have been truely great times.

what a load of pur bollox killing all 4 dogs police just presuming that all 4 killed that girl, i bet at the very most three killed, no way did all of them, it could have been 1. and saying never leave kids alone with any breed of dog, what a load of shit. dogs ARE mans best friend-male and female. there must be 0.5 of a percent of over all dog killings in the world in comparison to human killings. this was clearly some fucking cruel in humane fucker we wish never was born who clearly taught the dogs/dog wrong with aggression and hate……basicly another animal abuser. the owner should be shot and the dumb fuck who write the shit at the top should to……..DOGS ARE THE ONLY ANIMALS THAT WILL EVER LOVE YOU MORE THAN THEMSELVES…………p.s rip to miss jade anderson condonenses to the parents……

BSL is a waste of time and resources, dogs of any breed can attack. It’s never the dog’s fault and always the owner’s fault. A dog attacking a person is not normal dog behaviour and it is always the result of a neglected or abused dog.

All dog owners should be made to undergo dog obedience training and then at the end of the training they get a licence to own a dog, then dogs who have a licence can be recognized by wearing a special tag. However, this still won’t change things like lack of exercise and neglect but it will make owners legally responsible for their dog’s behavior.

I think ALL DOG OWNERS should be made to do dog training , made to see if they can handle a dog ,in all towns there should be a dog training club .I belive the dog breeders should also be made to micor chip all there dogs ,so when the dog ends up in a pound they can be found and made to help find new owners , and pay towards the dogs up keep while in care.

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